Durango has cold winter nights and short December days, so solar Durango systems should be sized for winter first. NOAA’s 1991–2020 climate normals put the average January low at 9.6°F at Durango–La Plata County Airport. On Dec. 21, U.S. Navy sunrise and sunset data shows 9 hours and 36 minutes of daylight in Durango. On a ground mount, you clear snow from the ground, not a roof.
Each SolarSet system is factory-built in Center, Colorado, on its own ground mount frame, then tested before it ships. Pick off grid, hybrid or grid tie, based on whether your land has La Plata Electric Association (LPEA) service.
Durango is less than 150 road miles from the factory, so curbside delivery there is free. Around Durango, we can also set and anchor the system on your land, quoted case by case. For statewide details on electrical permits, co-op service and delivery, see our guide to off grid solar Colorado.
Solar Durango choices start with one question: does an LPEA line reach your site? The co-op serves more than 36,600 members across 3,531 square miles of southwest Colorado. Here is how each SolarSet system fits a Durango property.
If your home already has LPEA service, grid tie solar can work alongside the utility line. Because grid tie has no batteries, it shuts off whenever the line goes down. A hybrid solar system adds battery storage, so it keeps running through the outage.
Off grid solar gives a cabin or raw land its own electricity, with no utility line. The off grid system on this page powers a cabin near Durango. Its eight 630-watt panels (5 kW) charge 20.4 kWh of batteries. We delivered, set and anchored it in 2026.
Barns, shops and equipment yards often sit far from the house meter. A SolarSet system can power their lighting and tools without a new utility line. Choose off grid where no service reaches, or hybrid for battery backup where LPEA power is already in place.
In dangerous fire weather, LPEA may call a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS). LPEA says a shutoff could last several hours to multiple days. Its fire settings can stop power from automatically coming back on after a fault. A hybrid system switches to batteries; grid tie shuts off too.
Yes. Curbside delivery to Durango is free, because the city sits inside our 300-road-mile zone. We can also place the system on your site and anchor it, quoted case by case. Earth screw anchors work in most soils, and rocky or sandy ground gets a different type of anchor.
Off grid and hybrid systems keep running during an LPEA shutoff, while grid tie solar stops until LPEA restores power. An off grid system isn’t on LPEA’s lines, so a shutoff doesn’t reach it. A hybrid solar system runs on its batteries. LPEA plans to post a PSPS Watch up to 48 hours before a shutoff. A PSPS Warning follows up to 4 hours before.
Outside city limits, La Plata County’s Building Division handles building permits. Electrical permits and inspections come from the Colorado State Electrical Board. Inside Durango city limits, start with the City of Durango. Permit rules change, so check with the right office before you order a system.
One cabin near Durango runs on a 5 kW array with 20.4 kWh of batteries, plus a hookup for a backup generator. Your size depends on your appliances and how often you use the cabin. Size it for December, when Durango gets less than 10 hours of daylight a day. To list your loads, start with our off grid sizing guide.
Tell us where the system will go, whether an LPEA line serves that location and what you plan to power. We’ll recommend off grid, hybrid or grid tie and size it for Durango winters. Contact us to plan your solar Durango system.
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